


You're my definition of perfect

by bea_weasley



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Muggle, Chubby Harry, Chubby Harry is too precious for this world, Dork Remus, F/M, Fluffy, I'm so in love with this characters, Remily - Freeform, Soccer fan Lily, romcom
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-14
Updated: 2020-07-14
Packaged: 2021-03-04 20:06:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 19,315
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25262050
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bea_weasley/pseuds/bea_weasley
Summary: Lily Evans knows that nothing in life is perfect, but her son Harry is close to be. He also is the reason why she meet Remus Lupin and her life take a turn that she didn't expect. (Muggle AU)
Relationships: Alice Longbottom & Marlene McKinnon & Dorcas Meadowes & Lily Evans Potter, Alice Longbottom/Frank Longbottom, Dorcas Meadowes/Fabian Prewett, Marlene McKinnon/Gideon Prewett, Remus Lupin & Frank Longbottom & Fabian Prewett & Gideon Prewett, Remus Lupin/Lily Evans Potter
Comments: 2
Kudos: 18





	You're my definition of perfect

**Author's Note:**

> This is my 50th fanfiction on FF.Net but I wanted to post here too. I want to dedicate this story to everyone who followed this crazy journey with me, to my parents for supporting me, to you that is about to read this story.
> 
> A huge special thanks to my Soulcrux/Hormate Ash for keeping up with my rants and crazy ideas (and for beta'ing my stuff and just being awesome); if wasn't for her, this story won't come to life. So, this is for you Ash! (Also, she is Harry's godmother, because Marlene is inspired on her xD)
> 
> Let's go for more 50 stories!
> 
> Few warnings: Muggle AU, the Marauders don't know each other. Lily is 27 and Harry is seven months old; Remus is 29. The story that Regulus wrote is one of my stories, so go check it! (It's on FF.Net under the same name)
> 
> Hope you enjoy "You're my definition of perfect" or as Ash and I know "chubby Harry"

Lily Evans had never imagined that her life would turn out like this, not that she was complaining. Harry was everything that she could hope for in a baby, and she loved him with all her might. The problem with the situation was that Harry’s father wasn’t in the picture. 

She never held it against James, after all, he didn’t know she was pregnant before he went abroad. Hell, even _Lily_ hadn't known that she had been pregnant! 

It wasn’t until after she had puked all over herself while having brunch with Marlene and Dorcas that she had realized that something was wrong. 

One trip to the pharmacy and five tests later confirmed that she was indeed pregnant. 

At least her parents were very supportive and helped her with everything she had needed during the pregnancy. 

Iris and Duncan Evans were surprised when they discovered that their oldest daughter was pregnant, but after the initial shock, they couldn’t be happier for her. 

The only sour note was that Petunia — _her only sister —_ didn’t want anything to have anything to do with Lily or with her nephew; this could also have been the influence of her ex-best friend, Severus, who had ended up marrying Petunia. 

Lily missed Petunia and sometimes, even Severus. But she knew that they had made their choice, and if they didn't approve of her pregnancy — of _her son_ — she didn’t want anything to do with them: Harry was her new life and she was happy with her choices. 

“And who wouldn’t want you in their lives, you’re a ray of sun in everyone's lives,” Lily said with a baby voice to Harry, who only giggled in response. “Are you ready to go meet Auntie Dee and Auntie Marley?”

“Blrhg blrhg,” Harry cooed, as he put his hand in his mouth and looked at his mother. 

“I will take that as a yes, my darling boy.” Lily was a mother hen and she loved Harry more than she thought was possible. “And today, you’re finally going to meet Uncle Frank, Auntie Alice and their baby Neville. I bet that you two are going to be friends for life.”

“Talking to Harry thinking that he will finally answer you, Lils?” Marlene was Harry’s godmother and more than once had tried to take the baby to spend more time with her, to Lily’s amusement. “You know that he is going to say _Marley_ first.”

“Excuse me, _supposed-best friend_ , but his _first_ word is going to be _Mummy,_ ” Lily said in Harry’s direction. “ _Mummy,_ say it, Harry. _Mummy!_ ”

Harry only looked at his mother who was making funny faces at him and smiled a toothy smile that made Lily and Marlene cry "aww!" as they cooed at the chubby baby. 

Harry was a happy baby, who made everyone around him smile at his cuteness. 

“I thought you were already ready,” Marlene said as she looked at Lily who was still wearing pyjamas. “Or are you planning to meet Ally with your doughnuts’ pants?”

“What?” Lily said as she looked down at what she was wearing and blushing hard, running to her bedroom to change, while Marlene laughed at her face. 

“Harry, you are lucky that I’m your godmother because, between your mother and Auntie Dee, I’m the most normal of the bunch,” Marlene said with a baby voice, picking Harry who only smiled wider. “I knew that you would agree with me on this!”

“Of course he agrees, he can’t exactly _disagree_ with you now, can he?” Lily asked, coming out of her bedroom wearing jeans and a fitted button shirt.

“I don’t have a clue what you’re talking about, Lils, Harry _loves_ me!” Marlene said with a pout on her face which made Lily laugh. “He loves me very much, right, _pumpkin_?”

“I still can’t believe I let you call my son _pumpkin_ , what I was thinking?” Lily laughed as she packed Harry's nappy bag. She knew that Alice could probably hand her a nappy or two if she needed, but she always liked to be prepared. 

“It probably happened because you were high on drugs after Harry’s birth,” Marlene replied with a cheeky grin which made Lily glare in her direction. “What? I asked if I could call my godson that and you agreed, so no taking it back now, Evans!”

“I think you spend too much time with Harry, you need to find someone for you, Marley.”

“What? _Why_ ? I prefer to spend more time with this adorable _pumpkin_ than with some random drunks that'll probably try to grope me.”

“MARLENE! Not in front of my son!”

“He needs to learn, so he doesn't turn into a jerk,” Marlene said, turning Harry in her direction. “Don’t ever change, my darling and perfect boy.”

Harry smiled and tried to grab Marlene’s hair, who allowed it for the time being. 

Maybe Lily was right and she needed to find someone to spend some nights with, but right now, her favourite man was the baby in her arms. 

Marlene was worried at first when she and Dorcas discovered that Lily was pregnant; yes, her friend had told them that it had been a one-night stand, but Marlene had still worried that she would lose her best friend for good. 

In the end, Lily’s pregnancy had brought them closer together, since she was the one Lily consulted and she had been by Lily's side when she went into labour. 

“Okay, this is weird. Give me back my son, Marlene!” Lily said extending her arms in Harry’s direction, who went willingly into his mother's arms. “Don’t pout, Marley, it isn’t a very good look on you!”

“I’m not pouting!” Marleen said, pouting.

“Of course not.” Lily giggled. “Sometimes, I feel like I have _two_ kids instead of one.”

“Please, you love me! And Harry loves me too, that’s the reason why I hang around you so much, because of your son,” Marlene said, grabbing her purse and Harry’s nappy bag. 

“You only came to my place because of Harry? This is such a way to feel cherished and loved,” Lily deadpanned. 

“I’m glad you understand,” Marlene said as she patted Lily’s head, which Harry imitated for the amusement of the two women. “Now, let’s get going! I miss Ally and I want to meet Nev!”

Lily, Marlene, and Harry left Lily’s flat and went to Marlene’s car. They drove to the Longbottoms’ house. 

Lily knew that Harry and Neville were going to meet for the first time, but she couldn't wait to see the two boys interact; she had a good feeling about this reunion today. 

* * *

The Longbottoms lived in a house near Lily’s flat, only a half-hour trip; Harry was enjoying the ride more than any of the two women thought he would. Harry was babbling non-stop, pointing his chubby fingers out of the window, leaving Lily and Marlene to their own devices. 

“Nev is only one day older than Harry, right?” Marlene asked, without taking her eyes off the road. 

“Yeah, he was born on July 30th. Alice and I were talking on the phone the other day and we thought that it would be good for them to spend some time together, you know? Harry hasn’t met any other kids in the past.”

“But wasn't there that woman at the end of your hallway who’s pregnant? I thought you were friendly with her.”

“Pandora? Yes, she was pregnant but her baby was born recently,” Lily said thinking about the little blonde girl she had met. “But she is a newborn, Marley, not someone who Harry can play with, right?”

“You never know...” Marlene said without wanting to say that maybe she was wrong. “Anyway, did Dee tell you when she would arrive?”

“You know how Dee is, she has her own time. Ally said that maybe Neville’s godfather would be there too, but she wasn’t sure about it,” Lily said, turning to see Harry dancing in his seat as the song played on the radio. “He is adorable, isn’t he?”

“You have to say that, you’re his mother.” Marlene laughed but sobered instantly. “What are you going to tell him when he asks about his father?”

Lily sighed, not wanting to answer that question. “Well, I can’t tell him the truth, right? That his father was someone that I met at a bar and went to his place after drinking too much.”

“Well, duh!” Marlene said with _obviously_ written all over her face, which made Lily snort and ease the tension she felt in her chest. “But you’re going to tell him something?”

“I was thinking about saying that I didn't know his father well and we parted ways, but I don’t have a grudge against him.”

“And what if he asks to meet his father one day?”

“I’ll deal with this when and _if_ the time comes,” Lily said with a hard tone. “I know that you’re only thinking about Harry’s well being, but this isn’t something I like to talk or think about much if I’m honest.”

“Okay, I got the hint: drop the subject,” Marlene laughed, glad that Lily was laughing along with her. “What do you think about us stopping at that bakery near Alice’s house and buying that blueberry pie that she’s obsessed with?”

“I think you’ll probably win her heart and she'll never let you leave her house again,” Lily giggled but agreed to stop and get some pies. She couldn't wait to see one of her best friends again. 

Alice Longbottom — neè Fawler — was the voice of reason in their group of friends: Lily was the _mom friend_ , Marlene the troublemaker and Dorcas the free spirit. They met each other on the first day of primary school and were friends ever since. This was probably the most time that they had passed without seeing each other, and it was an incredible coincidence that Lily and Alice had gotten pregnant around the same time. 

Alice had a delicate pregnancy and needed to stay on bed rest for the majority of her pregnancy, while Lily could work until her seventh month. Alice and Lily continued to talk to each other through video calls and phone calls, but this was the first time that they would see each other.

“Do you think that Harry and Nev are going to get along?” Marlene asked after their stop at the bakery. “Or are you already planning to bribe Harry to behave?”

“Marlene, I never bribed Harry before! What are you talking about?” Lily asked with a question on her face.

“Oh yeah, it was Dee that bribed Harry when we went to the park the other day,” Marlene said, slapping her forehead, missing the glare that Lily sent her way. 

“What do you mean Dorcas bribed my son?” Lily asked in a low voice, that made a chill run down Marlene’s spine. 

“Wh-what? Who said something about bribes? I think you’re hearing things, Lily dear.” Marlene laughed tersely, trying to distract her friend. Sadly, that didn’t work out. 

“Dee bribed Harry with food, right?” Lily said, pinching the bridge of her nose, to which Marlene only nodded. “I can’t even blame her, my dad does the same when he is babysitting.”

“You’re saying that Uncle Dunc bribes Harry too? This is too funny to put in words.” Marlene laughed so heartily that made Lily smile in return. 

“This doesn’t mean that she is off the hook, but I’ll let this go since his own grandfather does the same to him,” Lily said, looking at a babbling Harry. “How much until we get there, Marley?”

“We’re here!” Marley said, parking the car in front of a house two-stories high, painted in a pale yellow with the door and window frames painted in white. Lily felt at ease at once, just looking at the house. 

Getting out of the car — Lily with Harry in her arms and his nappy bag and Marlene with their purses and the pies — they walked towards the front door; they hadn’t walked halfway when the door opened and a blonde woman sprinted towards Lily with her arms opened, ready to hug her. 

“Lily! Oh my gosh, I missed you!” Alice Longbottom soon had her arms around Lily and Harry, and Lily was hugging her back; Harry, never one to be left out, hugged the new woman. “And who is this young man who’s hugging me?”

“Ally, this is Harry Duncan Evans, my precious little boy,” Lily said with a smile on her face. “Harry, this is your Auntie Alice.”

“Jegh yagda,” Harry said in his baby dialect. 

“He says that he is pleased to meet you,” Marlene translated, smirking. “I guess that Harry is going to steal you from me, it isn’t like we haven’t met in so long, right?”

“Marley! I missed you, but you could have left the sarcasm at home,” Alice said hugging her, the same way that she hugged Lily. “I’m so glad you came too.”

“I brought the blueberry pie that you like,” Marlene said, showing the box that she had on her hands. 

“Marley, if I wasn’t already married to Frank, I’d marry you on the spot just because of these pies,” Alice said with a wide smile, which made the other two laugh. 

“Ow baby, that’s a nice way to feel loved around here.” A voice from the door caught their attention: a man with brown hair stood with a chubby blond baby in his arms. “I’ll just grab my stuff and I’ll leave the house by this afternoon.”

“Frank! I missed you!” Lily sauntered to meet her friend at the door and beamed at the baby. “And who is this pretty boy?”

“This is Neville, our pride and joy,” Frank said with a winning smile. “And who is this little champion?” 

“This is Harry, isn’t he beautiful?” Lily said beaming with shining eyes. 

“He will steal hearts when he grows up, like his mother if what Ally told me is true,” Frank said, laughing a little. 

While the parents were talking about them, Harry and Neville stared at each other curiously, almost as if they were trying to recognize each other. Alice and Lily had only met when they were in the early stages of their pregnancies, so it was adorable to see both babies holding each other gazes so intently. 

“It looks like Harry and Nev are trying to win a contest of who is the chubbiest baby,” Marlene said with a chuckle as she approached them. “Ally! Nev is so cute! His cheeks are like red tomatoes ripe for the plucking!” 

“Marley, I think you’re spending too much time with Dee.” Lily laughed at her friend’s comparison. 

“What? You can’t deny this! Look at his cheeks!” Marlene said as she pointed. “I want to bite into his juicy cheeks!”

“I’m the same, I want to bite his cheeks all the time,” Alice said with a baby voice that made everyone look at her. “What? He’s my son, I can say this.”

“I tried once,” Frank admitted with a sheepish smile. 

“You did what?” Alice didn’t scream because of the boys, but she was furious.

“You were the one who admitted that you want to do it, you’re mad just because I tried. And for your information, he started to cry when I tried, so I stopped.” Frank was ashamed about what he did, but he wasn’t sorry for trying. 

“Are you all going to stand in the doorway and have a party outside?” A strict voice came from inside and made everyone look at the woman to whom it belonged. “Hello dears, are you Alice’s friends?” 

“Oh, sorry Augusta. We were so happy to be reunited, that we forgot to enter the house,” Alice said with a little laugh. “Girls, this is Augusta Longbottom, Frank’s mum; Augusta, these are Marlene McKinnon and Lily Evans, and her son Harry. He is only one day younger than Nev.” 

“Nice to meet you Augusta, how are you?” Lily asked with a smile, seeing that Harry was looking at her. “I think you already won Harry over.”

“He is such a darling, I think it’s him who conquered me.” Augusta smiled in Harry’s direction and the baby smiled at her. “I think you’re going to be a good friend to my Nev.”

“Why don’t we put those two to play together while we finish lunch? Marley already brought dessert and I bet that Dee will arrive any minute now,” Alice said beckoning everyone to enter the house. 

“Remus is coming too, Alice?” Augusta asked, which made Frank smirk for some unknown reason. 

“He said that he would try, but I don’t think he is going to come,” Alice said with a frown on her face. “It’s sad really, I wish that he could meet all of you.”

“Maybe next time Ally, don’t worry,” Lily said with a smile, missing the sharing glances between Augusta and Frank. “Can we still keep an eye on the boys when we put them to play?” 

“Sure, from the kitchen we can see the little rug that we’ll put them on,” Frank said, putting Neville on the aforementioned rug and gesturing to Lily to do the same. “Okay little man, behave yourself.”

“The same goes to you Harry, be nice to Neville,” Lily said putting Harry beside Neville, who smiled at the other boy. “They are already being friendly towards each other, awn.”

“They are adorable, aren’t they? Yes, you are!” Alice said with a baby voice, kneeling alongside Lily. 

“And we have lost these two, care to join me in the kitchen, Marley? They will join us… eventually.” Frank laughed at his joke. 

“This is such a dad move, Frank, good Lord.” Marlene was amused, but she was fighting a smile. “Let’s go finish lunch, while we wait for these two.”

Frank, Augusta and Marlene went to the kitchen, finishing the last touches of the meal while Lily and Alice tried to make Harry and Neville play together, which didn’t take long since the boys seemed like brothers already. 

Dorcas arrived not much long after Marlene and Lily, bringing toys for Neville and Harry and playing with them, forgetting all about the adults. 

“Dee always was the one that preferred to pass time with children than with us, ever since we met, remember?” Lily said, drinking a cup of tea after lunch. 

“That’s why her and Ally are so close, they both like to spend time with children rather than with us,” Marlene replied, looking at both women playing with the babies. 

“I didn’t imagine that they would get along so fine, seeing that they only met today, you know?” Frank took a sip of his tea. “We should do this again, maybe have a playdate for them?”

“Oh, this sounds amazing, Frank! Harry doesn’t have many friends of his age; the children in our building are either younger or older than him.” Lily was already onboard with the idea. “How about next Saturday? Do you think you and Alice are free?”

“I bet that Ally is free, but between us three...” Frank dropped his voice until only Lily and Marlene could hear him. “Ally needs a break, a day for herself, you know?”

“Lily needed the same a few weeks back,” Marlene said in the same tone. “I spent a whole day with Harry and she had the day to herself.”

“It was weird to have all that time to myself, but it was something that I needed,” Lily admitted to Frank, a little ashamed. “If it’s what Ally needs, I can take care of Nev for a day for her.”

“Thanks, Lily, Saturday is great. I don’t think I have to work, so I can be there with you, so Nev doesn't drive you crazy,” Frank laughed, which made the other two laugh. “Who’s ready for pie?”

“Me!” They heard Alice scream excitedly, which made everyone in the room laugh, including the two children who didn’t understand much. “Let’s eat pie!”

Lily was happy that Harry finally had a friend his age, and she couldn’t wait for the playdate next Saturday. She didn’t know yet, that the playdate would change not only Harry’s life but hers as well. 

* * *

Remus Lupin was a man with a mission in mind: to kill his best friend. He usually wasn’t so intent on murder, but this time, Frank had gone too far. 

“Why do you think I need your help, Frank? I can find a date without your help, thank you very much.” Remus was irritated with his friend, but he wasn't going to scream at him while Neville was near. 

“And you didn’t ask anyone out because…?” Frank asked with a shit grin on his face, which made Remus want to punch him. 

“Because I was busy with my classes! And helping Regulus and Emmeline in finding somewhere to send their manuscripts, all right, you prat?”

“But why are you so nervous? This is supposed to be just a playdate, you were the one who said something about a date.” 

Remus huffed and glared at his friend, who only cheekily smiled in response. “And why don’t you go over with Nev, instead of blackmailing me into it?”

“First off, I didn't blackmail you —” Frank started, but Remus interrupted him. 

“Didn’t? And what do you call threatening to expose those photos that we took on our vacation during senior year of college on Facebook?” Remus asked in a deadpan tone. 

“A way to make you do what I want?” Frank replied, smiling like he had won a million pounds, which just made Remus’ glare intensify. “Fine, call it blackmail, but this isn’t a way to arrange a date, I really need to work.”

“I don’t believe you, but I’ll do it because I love Nev and I’m doing it for him, so he can play with a friend,” Remus said, pointing a threatening finger in Frank’s direction. “Doing it for him, not you.”

“Duly noted.” Frank laughed at Remus’ antics. “Ally prepared his bag and Lily already knows how Nev is, so this shouldn’t be a problem. If you have a problem, you have my phone number and I’ll be there in less than ten minutes.”

“Got it,” Remus said, grabbing Neville’s bag. “Anything else that I need to know about my godson?”

“If you and Lily need a babysitter for Harry and Neville for you two to have some adult time, call Marley and she will be there in a heartbeat.” Frank started to laugh, missing the pillow that Remus sent in his direction. “Hey! This isn’t fair!”

“Stop trying to get me to go on a date, especially one with someone that I’m going to meet in less than half an hour,” Remus barked to Frank, who was much more amused by Remus' reaction than anything else. 

“I’ll stop only on the day that you’re married, preferably to Lily.” Remus only rolled his eyes in a way of answer. 

Waving goodbye to Frank — who was still swearing that he had to work, even if he was wearing his pyjamas — and grabbing Neville, he drove to Lily and Harry’s place, trying to let go of the thoughts that Frank had put in his head.

The duo soon arrived at a nice brick building and a feel of the countryside in the neighbourhood. 

Remus checked his phone to see which floor and which number was Lily’s apartment and entered the building with Neville in his arms. 

Three flights of stairs later, he was knocking on a white door, waiting anxiously to meet the woman Frank spoke so highly of. Remus wasn’t disappointed when a gorgeous redhead opened the door, smiling a ten-thousand-watts smile. 

“Nev! I’m so happy to see you! How are you, my handsome little man?” the woman spoke to Nev in that baby voice that had always amused Remus, but now, he couldn’t take his eyes off her.

Right in front of him was one of the most beautiful women he had ever laid eyes on; her green eyes were like emeralds, shining bright in the sunlight, and her red hair looked so smooth that all he wanted to do was to run his hands through her locks and snog her senseless. Remus could understand why Frank was so adamant that he come to her place with Nev, not that he was going to admit that to him. 

“And who do you have with you? You aren’t Frank,” the redhead — _Lily? Goddess?_ — asked, as she focused on Remus for the first time. 

Lily wasn’t unaffected by Remus, she only disguised it better. She had never seen anyone more adorable than this man in front of her — except for Harry and Neville; his dishevelled hair and warm brown eyes made her feel warm inside and wanted to cuddle with him for the rest of her life… God, she needed to leave her apartment more.

“No, I’m not.” Remus chuckled which made Lily’s insides warmer. “I’m Remus Lupin, Neville’s godfather.”

“Oh, Remus! Nice to meet you! I heard amazing things about you from Ally,” Lily said excitedly. ‘ _Ally only forgot to mention how hot you are,_ ’ Lily thought to herself. “I’m Lily Evans, but I think you already knew that, right?”

“Nice to meet you Lily, and yeah, Frankie and Ally had a lot of things to say about you,” Remus replied with a shy smile. 

“How about we continue to talk inside? That way, Nev and Harry can play with each other and not look at us like we’ve lost our minds.” Lily smiled and gestured to Remus and Neville to enter her house. 

Remus realized that Lily’s flat wasn’t big, but felt cosy. It had ample space with lots of natural light. Her place was decorated in all white and grey colours, with a white couch and a dining table right next to the kitchen; he realized that she had moved a wood centre table to the side, and in its place was a play rug with a toddler surrounded by toys. 

“And this handsome boy over here must be Harry, I presume,” Remus said, putting Neville on the rug alongside Harry, who smiled at seeing his new friend. “Look, Nev, Harry is excited to see you!”

“Jirghs,” Harry said, trying to hug Neville, who only looked at the other boy. 

“I guess that means welcome in baby language,” Lily said with a small laugh. “Marlene is the expert in translating Harry’s sentences.”

“Really? Gideon is the expert in Nev’s, maybe we should take notes from them.” Remus laughed with Lily, thinking about how adorable she looked while laughing. ‘ _Calm down, Mr Lupin, you just met her. Don’t scare her! Even if she is adorably hot and you want to take her on a date!_ ’

“I’m glad that they get along well, Harry doesn’t have many friends of his age around here, and these two are only one day apart in age,” Lily said, looking at the two boys playing with some blocks. “They look adorable, don’t they?”

“Yes, and they look like brothers sharing the toys without fighting.” Remus chuckled to himself.

“Are you the only child, Remus?” Lily asked with an amused tone, which caught him by surprise. 

“Yes… how do you know?” 

“Just an only child would say that brothers don’t fight over sharing toys.”

“Are you saying that from experience?”

“Yes, you can say that.” By the tone of her voice, Remus knew better than to pry and decided to change the subject.

“I know that you and Ally have been friends for a long time, but she didn’t tell me what you do,” Remus said, sitting near the rug and Neville, who smiled in his direction. 

“I’m an editor for Bloomsbury Publishing and I’m actually reading some new manuscripts before I send them to my boss,” Lily said a little ashamed for some unknown reason, sitting by Harry’s side. “I was reading a new manuscript that came this week and it’s very good and I’m kinda addicted.”

“Really? This sounds very interesting,” Remus said, rubbing Neville’s back without realizing what he was doing. “What is this story about? If you can tell me about it.”

“It’s about an elf who has to deliver a talisman to an enemy king to stop a war, and this kingdom is at war with her kingdom for so long, and a prophecy has been made about her and her talisman. It looks like the Pixies — these are the enemies of the Elves — are waiting for something, I don’t know what it is yet, but I’m anxious to discover.” Lily was very enthusiastic about this story and Remus could tell by her gesticulation while talking, but something in that story sounded familiar. 

“This manuscript you’re talking about… by any means, is the story called ‘ _The Dragonne Talisman_ ’?” Remus was surprised to see Lily widening her eyes when she heard the name. 

“How do you know? This has been kept secret for so long and no one besides me knows about this!” 

Remus chuckled, trying to ease her discomfort. “I know about this story because I already read it.”

“What? That’s impossible!”

“No, it isn’t. I believe that the name of the author is Regulus Black, right?” At her silent nod, Remus continued. “He is one of my students. I teach English Literature at Oxford and Regulus is one of my most promising students, I enjoyed reading that story of his and I’m glad that you’re considering his story to be published.”

“Oh my God, Remus! You have to introduce me to him! I’m in love with his story and have the opportunity of meeting him!” Lily was smiling brighter and it was doing funny things to Remus, even if he did feel a little jealous at the way she was talking about Regulus. But this was absurd, right? They had just met. 

“I think I can arrange for you to meet him, but you would have to wait for him to return from his family’s home in France,” Remus said with a smile over her enthusiasm. “They are throwing a family reunion or something like that.”

“Oh, this is so exciting! I believe that if I can talk with Regulus, my boss definitely would choose his story!” Lily became more and more enthusiastic, and in Remus’ eyes, prettier and prettier. 

They spent more time talking about their jobs and their similarities, how Remus ended up teaching at Oxford at a young age and some of his most prominent students and who Lily could expect a manuscript from in the future; Lily, on the other hand, talked about the times she needed to deal with crazy PRs or authors who didn’t want to leave their manuscripts with her or someone from her team. 

While the adults talked and started to get to know each other better, Neville and Harry were slowly building a friendship between them; Harry usually didn't like to have other people playing with his blocks (aka Marlene and Dorcas), but with Neville was almost instinctive. It was like they were long-lost siblings, who were finally reunited. 

Soon, the duo started crying as they had gotten hungry playing for so long.

“Oh Lord, what’s happening?” Remus started to panic when he saw the two boys crying with all their might. “Why are they crying like this?”

“They’re just hungry, Remus, don’t worry.” Lily laughed at Remus freaking out. “Ally probably sent a bottle in his bag, right? Or you didn’t check?”

“I didn’t check, but this sounds like something that Ally would do.” Remus laughed without humour. He was embarrassed at his reaction but glad that Lily knew what to do. 

Lily didn’t waste any time in searching Neville’s bag for a bottle that Alice sent with the boy; she usually breastfed Harry, but she wouldn’t do that today in front of Remus, no matter how cute she thought he was. She used the bottle that she usually used when her parents were babysitting Harry; while she was heating their bottles, Remus was trying to distract the two boys, and they stopped to cry. 

“Are you having any luck calming them down?” Lily asked, peering over the little counter that separated her kitchen from her living-room. Her heart swelled when she saw Remus had both Neville and Harry on his lap, hugging both boys to his chest, as he sang softly to them. 

_‘Could he be more adorable than he already is? Sweet Lord, how can a man be so perfect like this? And I can’t believe that I’m jealous of my son, get a grip Evans,’_ Lily thought to herself, listening to Remus sing a lullaby to the boys. 

“It looks like you’re a baby-enchanter or something,” Lily said, coming to the living room with the bottles. 

“My friend Fabian used to say that he liked to hear me sing, it helped him sleep during college,” Remus said swiftly to not disturb the boys. 

“Lucky him,” Lily muttered under her breath, praying that Remus didn’t hear her. “So, you want to give Harry to me and you feed Nev?”

“Sure.” Remus tried to pass Harry to Lily, but the little boy tightened his grip on Remus, who looked at Lily for help. 

“Looks like my son is trying to tell me something.” Lily chucked thinking that she would do the same thing if she was in Harry’s place. “Ok, I’ll feed Nev if you don’t mind feeding Harry?”

“I don’t think I have a choice on this.” Remus laughed and passed Neville to Lily’s arm, keeping a grip on Harry. “Ok Harry, time for lunch.”

It didn’t take long for the boys to be fed and with another lullaby from Remus, they were sleeping like the little angels they were. 

“I guess this is our time to eat lunch, right?” Remus asked embarrassed. He didn’t know how to act in front of Lily, not without Neville by his side. 

“I think you’re right. Do you have a preference?” Lily asked, grabbing her phone and searching for something to be delivered. “I usually eat fish and chips on Saturday’s, just because I try to eat healthier on the weekdays.”

“Fish and chips are fine by me, I’m the intruder in your house, so you don’t need to worry about me.”

“Remus, please! You aren’t an intruder, you’re my guest. I’m glad that you’re here today.” Lily blushed at her statement, but she said what she wanted. 

“Well, if you’re sure of this… then let me buy our lunch. Please,” Remus added seeing that Lily was ready to dismiss him. “It’s the least I can do. Besides, I know a place where you can get the best fish and chips in London.”

“If you insist…” 

“I insist. I’ll be right back,” Remus said, standing from the rug and walking in the direction of the door, Lily following right behind. She looked at him leaving her house, excited waiting for him to return. 

* * *

“Oh my God, this is the best fish I’ve ever eaten! What is this, halibut?” Lily was trying hard not to moan while eating, but the fish tasted divine. And if Remus was affected by her moans, it’s her luck, right?

Remus gulped before he could respond, his throat suddenly dry. “I’m sorry, I don’t know which fish they use. But it’s great, right?”

“This probably sounds weird, but I’m glad that Harry is asleep or else I would have to share with him,” Lily said with her mouth full of fish. “God, Remus, I may not let you leave my house anytime soon; you sang to my son and put him to sleep, _and_ bought me the best fish and chips I've ever eaten… will you marry me?” 

Remus choked on his chips, feeling himself getting redder and redder by the minute. He only started breathing after Lily thumped him on his back. 

“Thanks,” he said, still out of air. “Don’t do this to me, Lily, I don’t know if I can recover so easily again.” 

“I’m sorry, Remus, I guess I was just in love with this that I forgot my manners.” Lily was only half kidding. 

Before they could feel the tension grow, a cry reminded them that they weren’t alone. 

Excusing herself, Lily went to Harry’s room to see who had woken up; it didn’t take long for her to come back with Harry. 

“Look like someone smelled the chips and wanted some for himself,” Lily said lovingly, glancing at her son. Remus smiled at the interaction, feeling content just to watch. 

Lily shared some chips with Harry, just so he wouldn't feel left out as she explained to Remus. 

Neville slept almost all afternoon, and Remus decided that it was time to go; explaining this to Lily was easy, Harry wasn’t so keen on letting his new friend go away so easily…

“I’m sorry Remus, I have the feeling that Harry is a little attached to you.” 

“No need to say sorry Lily, I liked meeting Harry today too, and I’m glad that the feeling is reciprocated.” 

“Reciprocated? Remus, my son is attached to you like a baby koala! I have a feeling that he's going to throw a tantrum the minute you walk out the door.”

Lily looked at Harry, who didn’t show any signs of letting Remus go anytime soon; she didn’t want to show that she was inclined to do the same. 

“Harry, honey, remember we've already talked about this? We need to let people go to their own houses so that they can come back to visit you later.” Lily was trying to reason with a seven-months baby like he was a grown-up. 

“Jwbag akenw,” Harry replied with a frown on his face, to which Lily only sighed. Remus was watching this interaction with an amused smile. 

“Remus… do you like football?” Lily asked, seemingly out of nowhere.

“I’m a Chelsea fan and I went to Stamford Bridge a few times with my friends. Why?”

“Oh good, you’re a Chelsea fan too! We are watching the game here on Saturday, me, my friends and maybe my parents… do you think you would enjoy coming to see with us? You can invite your friends too!”

Remus started to think about her invitation, but he knew what he was going to say before she had even finished. 

“I’d love to watch the game with you!” He blurted out, blushing under her stare. 

“That's great! See, Harry? Remus is going to watch the game with us, so maybe you can let him go now?”

Harry didn’t sound too inclined to complain with his mother, but at least he let go of Remus and went to his mother’s arms.

“At least Nev is still sleeping; I’m not anxious to witness the other battle that's going to happen when I leave his house,” Remus chuckled, seeing the other boy sleeping on his chair. 

“Prepare yourself for next Saturday then,” Lily smirked with shining eyes. “I’ll send you the details about the match during the week if it’s okay with you?”

“Sure, send me a text.” Remus stood up from the couch and walked in Nev’s direction. Lily stood with him, adjusting Harry on her hips. “I'll see you next Saturday then.”

“It’s a date,” Lily replied, opening the door and waving to Remus and Neville, with a smile on her face. 

* * *

Lily and Harry always spent Sundays with her parents, where Lily had time with her mother and destress from the week, and Iris and Duncan got to spend quality time with their grandchild. 

Duncan was trying to coach Harry to say _papa_ with no success, while Lily was helping Iris make lunch. 

“...and he was so adorable! He even went to get lunch for us, and Mum, I swear to you, it was the _best_ fish and chips I’ve ever eaten!” Lily was talking enthusiastically with her mother while tossing the salad, missing her mother's smile. 

“And you said that he was Neville’s godfather?” Iris always knew when her daughter was infatuated with someone, and this looked like one of those times. She couldn’t help but smile, seeing Lily so happy. 

“Yes, he brought Neville to a playdate with Harry, and Harry clung to him like a baby koala, and he almost didn’t let him leave our flat.”

“Sounds like Harry liked him too.”

“And he was so _adorable_ with Harry! He's going to watch the match with us next Saturday, he's a Chelsea fan too!”

“Who is also a Chelsea fan? I already like him.” Duncan entered the kitchen with Harry in his arms. 

“Duncan, you can’t like people just because they cheer for the same team as you,” Iris reprimanded her husband, trying to hide her amusement.

“Why not? You’re the one who liked Samantha Diggory just because you two were obsessed over that play you watched last summer,” Duncan replied, seeing Iris blush. 

“Don’t try to turn this on me, Dunc! You can’t like someone based on their football preferences.” Iris returned to making dessert while Lily and Duncan laughed silently. 

“Fine, I’ll concede with you on this. Who are we talking about?” Duncan put Harry on his high chair and looked at his daughter. “Is he someone I should meet before you make big decisions?”

“I don’t have a clue about what you're talking about, Dad.” Lily returned to the salad, her face as red as the tomatoes she was slicing. 

“It’s Neville’s godfather who's enchanted our daughter. He's a Literature professor who knows the author of that story she was talking non-stop about, and he is a Chelsea fan and apparently, your _grandson_ loves him,” Iris said, sitting in a chair next to Harry, who was oblivious to everything that was happening around him.

“Mum!” Lily couldn’t believe what her mother was saying, or at the fact that her parents were laughing at her — and Harry was laughing along with them. “Glad to know that even my _son_ finds my embarrassment funny.”

“Oh honey, you know that I’m only messing with you.” Iris had never seen Lily so frustrated before, not even when she told them she was pregnant. “If you don’t mind, your father and I could watch the match with you and the girls, and meet this handsome man?”

“If he is a Chelsea fan, I already like him,” Duncan said, making goofy faces at Harry. 

Lily only groaned, thinking that she walked right into it. “I guess you can come, on two conditions...”

“What, Lilypad?” Duncan asked, and Lily smiled at the nickname. 

“One, you two don’t make any comments about Remus or anything that we discussed today.” Lily looked at her parents, they shared a silent conversation, but they both nodded. “And two… Dad makes his famous potato salad.”

“Sold!” Duncan raised his arms, promptly being imitated by Harry. “See? Pumpkin agrees with me.”

“I thought only Marlene called him that.” Lily frowned, to which her father only shrugged. 

“Okay, lunch is ready! Go wash your hands and later we can discuss how Dunc will behave while watching the game. Go!” Iris shooed the two of them out of the kitchen while grabbing Harry. “Looks like Mummy has a crush, Harry, let’s see how this works out.”

* * *

“Sadly, Ally and Frankie won’t come to watch the game with us,” Marlene said while rearranging Lily’s living room to accommodate everyone. “You said that Remus was bringing some friends?”

“Ally said that they were visiting her parents, but I could hear Frankie pouting in the background.” Lily was finishing grilling some burgers when her parents arrived at the same time as Dorcas. 

“Lilypad! Why aren’t you using your jersey? You know that's tradition!” Duncan barely arrived and already was in _game mode._ “I can’t believe that you didn’t buy a jersey for my grandson yet.”

“Dad, relax! I’ll buy Harry a jersey, but today we are going to only paint his face, okay? Hi Mum.” Lily kissed her mother’s cheek who was only watching the banter. “Hey Dee, good to know that you are early.”

“Uncle Dunc sent me a message that he was doing his famous potato salad and I figured that if I came early, maybe he'll let me taste a little before everyone else,” Dorcas replied without feeling ashamed. 

Dorcas Meadowes was like another daughter of the Evans family, having lost her parents when she was younger. Iris and Duncan didn’t adopt her legally because she had grandparents who had raised her, but they treated her like a daughter nonetheless. 

“It’s good to know that _someone_ appreciates my potato salad, you can have the second serving, Dee, after Harry of course,” Duncan shouted from the kitchen, winking in their direction. Lily and Dorcas giggled at his antics. 

“And where is your new friend, Lilypad? I’m anxious to meet him,” Iris said with a mischievous smile, sitting next to Harry. “If Harry liked him so much, I think we are going to like him too.”

“What new friend? What aren’t you telling us, Lil?” Marlene was sporting the same smile as Iris', a scene which made Lily groan, knowing very well that this meant Marlene and her mother weren’t going to let it go. 

“Could you relax? It’s Remus, Neville’s godfather. He came over last Saturday with Nev to have a playdate with Harry, and Harry clung to him like a baby koala. So, I asked him to come to watch the game with us, since he, too, is a Chelsea fan.” Lily could see in her friends' eyes that they would make her regret not telling them sooner. “We can discuss this after the game okay? Marley, can you paint our faces? You’re the most artistic of us all.” 

“You can flatter me all you want, I'm still interrogating you after the game,” Marleen said with a smug smile. “C’me here pumpkin, you’re going first.”

Lily only sighed, seeing her family having fun over her situation. She couldn't help but smile and think about where Remus was and if he was going to be late. 

Meanwhile, Remus was almost giving up on his friends and going to Lily’s flat solo. 

“For the love of God, what is taking you so long? You’re taking forever to get ready!” Remus yelled at his friends. He was trying not to pace in their living room, but it was taking all his will power. “You are doing this to annoy me, right?”

“Why are you saying that, Remmy? We would never do that to you,” Gideon said as he left his room. 

“We did this to Frank, but he deserved it,” Fabian said, joining them in the living room. “It was before he asked Alice to marry him, remember?”

“How could I forget? I thought he was going to throw us out the window,” Gideon laughed, remembering the prank he played on their friend. 

“Yeah, that was hilarious,” Remus replied in a dry tone. “Can we reminisce about this in the car?”

“Look Gid, little Remmy here is anxious to go to his new friend’s place,” Fabian said with a mischievous smile. That was never a good sign. “And why are you fidgeting? Something that we need to know?”

“It couldn’t be that you found your new friend hot or something, right? For what Frank told us, you looked like you were smitten with — what’s her name? Lily? Sounds like Remus is taking us on his date,” Gideon said with the same smile like his brother. Great, now the twins were ganging up on him. 

“Guys, please don’t be like this…” Remus hated when they were in one of their moods, trying to pry; they resembled their sister when they do this. “This is just a friendly get-together; her parents will be there, her _son_ will be there!”

“Already meeting the in-laws? Damn Remus, you don’t waste time, huh?!” Gideon said, looking impressed. 

“For the love of all things, could you _not_ be like this today? I’ll leave you two behind and I’ll take the remote with me, so you two won’t be able to watch the match.” Remus was used to teenagers misbehaving or even young adults, so he always used his _professor tone_ when dealing with the twins. 

“Gee Remus, no need to resort to such tactics! We’ll behave,” Fabian said with a pout, looking like a kicked puppy. 

“We aren't five years old, you know? No need to talk with us like that,” Gideon said in the same tone that Fabian.

“Good, so let’s get going! We are almost late!” Remus barked, and made the twins get out of their shared flat and get in the car. Remus wasn’t going to let them know, but he was anxious to meet Lily again: she had something about her which made something inside him stir. 

Remus and the twins were wearing Chelsea jerseys and Fabian was already getting excited at the prospect of a Chelsea victory. Remus and Gideon were calmer with their demeanour, but when the game started, it was like a beast was released. 

“Wow, cool place! I went to the restaurant at the end of the street on a date last month and it was great!” Gideon said, looking at Lily’s building. 

“The date or the restaurant?” Fabian asked from his side. 

“Both.” Gideon grinned, to which his twin _high-fived_ him. Remus only rolled his eyes over them. 

“Remember that you told me that you’re going to behave yourselves.” Remus was almost running towards the building, but he refrained to do so. His crush was getting out of control. 

The three of them quickly climbed the stairs, arriving at no time at Lily’s flat. They could hear laughter coming from the inside of the apartment and smiled; Remus didn’t waste any time and knocked on the door. 

“ _Duncan, open the door!_ ” someone from the inside yelled and a redheaded man opened the door, smiling at them. 

“And who do we have here?” the man asked, his smile still on his face. 

“Hello sir, I’m Remus Lupin and these are Fabian and Gideon Prewett. Nice to meet you,” Remus said, extending his hand, but was surprised when he was hugged instead. 

“Any Chelsea fan is a friend of mine! I’m Duncan Evans, Lily’s dad, and no need to call me _sir_ , call me Dunc.” Duncan said, releasing Remus and turning to the twins. “Oy Iris! These two are redheads and mischievous like me! Something I need to know?” 

“Again, Duncan? It gets old, you know?” Iris said, coming to welcome the newcomers. “Hello dears, I’m Iris. Please, come in!”

Remus, Gideon and Fabian entered the flat, to have their visions assaulted with blue, so characteristic of Chelsea, all over the place — and three women and a baby seated on the sofa, all with their faces painted in the colours of their team. 

“Remus! I’m glad that you could come!” Lily standing up from the couch with Harry in her arms, coming to greet him. 

Remus didn’t think that he could smile wider than he already was. 

“Hey Lily, thanks for the invitation.” Remus blushed when he received a kiss on his cheek, a fact that didn’t go unnoticed by the twins or anyone else. “I hope you don’t mind, I brought my friends; they are Chelsea fans too.”

“Of course not! The more the merrier!” Lily turned to the twins, a frown on her face. “I think we will need Marley’s help in painting something on your faces so we can recognize which one is which.”

“I think this is a good idea, in the meantime, I’m Fabian Prewett,” Fabian said kissing her hand, which made her giggle. 

“And I’m Gideon Prewett, but I have the feeling that you already know my last name.” Gideon imitated his brother, which made Remus roll his eyes. 

“I’m glad that you guys came and that you cheer for Chelsea also. These two on the couch are Marlene McKinnon and Dorcas Meadowes,” Lily said, gesturing to the blonde and the brunette while speaking. “And this handsome boy here is Harry, my son.”

“Oh, hi Harry!” Gideon said with a baby voice that instantly grabbed his attention. 

“We heard so much about you,” Fabian mimicked his brother’s voice. 

“Pfaqe fbldadl,” Harry said enthusiastic, which made everyone “aww” at him. 

“Harry says that he is pleased to meet you and glad that you’re using Chelsea jerseys,” Marlene said, standing up and coming closer to them. 

“Oh, you can translate baby talk? I do this with Nev,” Gideon said smiling gallantly at Marlene who blushed. The two of them missed the look that Remus and Lily shared. 

“I've been translating Harry’s speech ever since he started babbling, so that’s why I know that he is going to say Marley first, right pumpkin?” Marlene said, tickling Harry’s belly, who giggled in response. “I’ll take that as a yes.”

“Right, continue to say this to yourself and don’t come crying to me when he says _Dee_ first,” Dorcas said from her spot on the couch. “And before you say something to me, why don’t you start to paint the faces of our guests? It’s better to have their faces painted before the match starts.”

“Right-o!” Marlene was like a toddler with a new toy, painting the faces of the boys. Without telling Lily, she painted Remus' face to match Harry’s, while doing something to distinguish Gideon and Fabian from each other. 

Duncan and Iris were in the kitchen, watching the interaction between Lily, Harry and Remus; they already knew that Lily was quite smitten with the young man, and Harry adored him. The point here was to see how Remus felt about them, without having to ask him directly.

Remus was a gentleman and practically followed Lily with his eyes, wherever she went — and smiling every time she caught him doing it. 

Harry had clung to him like a baby octopus the moment he had sat down on the couch and didn’t let him move much, to the delight of everyone else. 

“How long do you think it will take for him to ask her out?” Iris murmured conspiratorially in her husband’s ear. 

“If he doesn’t ask her out in two weeks, I’m almost one hundred per cent certain that our daughter will ask him. She was never the patient one, you know that.” Duncan looked at his wife. “Sadly, Tuney isn’t here with us, but I guess she made her choice.”

“That’s right, my dear,” Iris said with a sad voice, but it didn’t last. “Are you thinking about asking Remus to watch the games with you, right?”

“It's pointless to ask you to get out of my mind at this point, right?” Duncan asked with a chuckle. 

“Of course, after so many years together I know you, darling.” Iris patted her husband’s cheek. 

“But you’re right, it's going to be nice to have another man in the family who likes the same things I do.”

“He isn’t part of our family, dear.”

“ _Yet_ , he isn’t part of our family yet. Look at those two on the couch, it’s meant to be.” Duncan motioned to Remus and Harry snuggling, a scene that made the grandparents sigh in content. 

“I’m sorry that Harry is all over you again, Remus, but it looks like he adores to snuggle with you,” Lily said with a small smile. ‘ _Like you wouldn’t want to do the same, right, Evans?_ ’

“It’s okay Lily, I like to snuggle with him as well.” Remus was glad that Harry was on his chest if it meant that he would have all of Lily’s attention. 

The two of them couldn’t even mask that they were interested in each other, making goo-goo eyes at each other at every opportunity. Even Harry realized that something was happening between his mother and his new friend. 

“Jfslf fçfshl çdajf,” Harry said in a cute baby voice. 

“Harry says _stop making those eyes at my mummy, I'm hungry so feed me_ ,” Marlene said in a matter-of-fact tone, that made everyone laugh while Remus and Lily blushed. 

“Thanks for the translation, Marlene,” Lily said between gritted teeth. “If you can give me back my son Remus, I’ll feed him.”

“Oh, right, sorry.” Remus still was blushing and Lily was finding it difficult not to kiss him right there, but she could control herself. “Okay Harry, it’s time to go to your mother.”

Harry grabbed Remus’ shirt and didn’t seem to want to let go, an action that made Lily sigh and smile at the same time. She knew what she needed to do, but she wasn’t sure if it was the right thing or not. 

Trying not to think too much about it, she stood up from the couch and motioned to Remus to follow her into Harry’s bedroom — stopping at the kitchen to tell her parents where she was going. 

“I’m sorry about this, I bet that you would rather be out there, waiting for the match to start.” Lily closed the door of the room after they entered, muffling the sound of the tv and chatter. 

“I’m exactly where I want to be Lily, don’t worry.” Remus smiled reassuringly at her, which made butterflies do a little dance in her stomach. Harry just looked between them and smiled a toothless smile.

“And you little man, why didn't you come with your mother when I asked, huh?” Lily asked Harry in her baby voice. “Are you planning to go home with Remus after the match?”

Harry only giggled in response, which made Remus and Lily smile at him.

“I don’t think he would go home with me, you’re exaggerating.”

“Oh, I wouldn’t put this past Harry. One time, he almost went home with Dee just because she had chocolate.”

“Well… I can’t exactly judge Harry on this since I probably would have sold myself short for good chocolate.” 

“Huh, good to know…” Lily murmured to herself. 

“I’m sorry?” Remus was confused, thinking if he heard what he thought he heard.

“Nothing, I was just thinking out loud.” Lily smiled a little guiltily. “If you can pass Harry to me, I’ll breastfeed him.”

“Sure!” Remus was blushing hard, he could feel the heat coming from his cheeks. “Do you want me to go back to the living room?”

“I don’t think Harry would let you leave this room without him, so… why don’t you stand near his change table and I’ll sit by the chair?” Lily was trying with all her might not blush at her suggestion, but she knew her son well. 

“Whatever makes you comfortable,” Remus mumbled, passing Harry into Lily’s waiting arms. This time, the little boy went without a fuss, like it was something that he did every day. 

Lily and Remus didn’t talk while Harry was feeding; Lily focused all her attention on her son, even if she couldn’t see his face, since she put a towel over his face, to cover herself up a little. 

Remus was looking at Harry’s room, smiling to himself at the children’s books on a shelf and the Chelsea flag on the wall. He could see some toys scattered on the rug next to his crib, and he could imagine Lily sitting on the rug playing with Harry. 

“Did you read all these books to him already?” Remus asked, taking Lily out of the reverie she was in. 

“Huh? Oh, not all of them. Most I read to him while I was pregnant. I read to him sometimes, but I think I’m waiting until he is a little older, so he can understand what I’m saying.” 

“This is a nice thought. And what do you like to read? That isn’t related to your work, I mean.” 

“I usually read historical romance, mystery books or something from Sophie Kinsella… depends on the mood of the day.”

“You like Agatha Christie? She is one of my favourite authors.”

Remus and Lily spent some time talking about their favourite books and authors, and what they liked to read. In the meantime, Lily finished breastfeeding Harry and soon, they were joining the others outside, ready to watch the game. 

* * *

“Oh, for fudge’s sake! This referee is clearly sold!” Lily screamed, red-faced with rage. Remus didn’t know if he should feel afraid or aroused. 

“Or he's blind! It was a clear foul! C’mon!” Dorcas shouted, stuffing her face with chips. “This game is worse than the one we saw at Auntie Iris’ place.”

“Oh yeah, that was a lame game,” Duncan agreed with Dorcas. “I still don’t know how — baa-baa black sheep! You just need to shoot for the goal! You’re paid to do this!”

“I’m assuming that you all learn how to curse in a way that Harry won’t be traumatized?” Gideon asked Marlene as he invaded her space. 

“Oh, you have no idea! Harry can curse in his baby voice, I just don’t translate for them.” Marlene winked in Gideon’s direction, making the redhead blush. “I bet that you do the same for Nev?”

“You can say something like that… what else do you translate for Harry?” Gideon was enchanted by the woman at his side.

“I'm probably going to embarrass Lily and Remus a little more, they were practically shagging with their eyes,” Marlene smirked, thinking about what she was planning to do. “Besides, Remus looks adorable with my godson.”

Remus was sitting on the floor, with Harry on his lap, watching the game. Sometimes, Harry would babble something and Remus would reply softly to the boy; Lily was too enthralled by the game to notice the little things, but Marlene was stocking everything to tell her later. 

“ **S** ugar **H** oney **I** ced **T** ea! What is happening with this team today! You look like a bunch of beheaded chickens running around!” Lily yelled at the screen, turning everyone's attention to her. “What? You can’t say that you don’t agree with me.”

“And that’s how I know that Lily is into your friend, the same way he is into her.” Marlene smiled even wider.

“How can you be so certain about it?” Gideon was curious, and this was never a good combination with the mischievous smile he was sporting.

“Lily never curses in front of people that she doesn’t feel comfortable with. I guess she is comfortable around your brother and you too.” Marlene turned to watch him. “It’s best for your friend not to hurt my best friend.”

“Is that a threat? Because if your friend hurts my friend, she will have to deal with Frank, Fabian and me.” Gideon replied in a low voice, that made a chill run down Marlene’s spine. She wondered what else she could make him say in that voice. 

“Glad to know that we are on the same page, and are you going to help me with those two?” Marlene asked, amused. 

“Of course! Lily is a good match for Remus,” Gideon said, sneaking an arm around Marlene’s waist. “The same way that I think that we could be a good match.”

“Okay, lover boy. Let’s try to match that couple up first before we try with ourselves.” Marlene patted Gideon’s hand, but she didn’t make any effort to push his hand away. 

Half-time came sooner than they expected, and everyone started to mingle with each other or go to the kitchen to grab something to eat. Lily helped Remus give some potato salad to Harry and everyone around them could see that Remus was bewitched by the boy — and by Lily. Lily too was swooning over Remus, and she knew that she would endure a lot of teasing from her parents and friends after the boys left. 

The second half of the match passed without much fuss, with only Lily, Duncan and Dorcas paying attention to the match. Remus engaged in conversation with Iris since they both were Literature teachers — Iris worked at a high school. Iris was impressed with the young man in front of her, not only by his dedication or teaching at Oxford at such a young age but also, for the way he doted on her grandson. 

Iris usually kept Harry occupied while his mother screamed her indignation over the match, but Remus did this for Harry without thinking much; it seemed second nature for him. The matriarch of the Evans was happy with what she was witnessing right in front of her: Remus falling in love with Harry and Lily.

“This game was such a waste of time! I hope that Lampard takes his head from where it’s stuck now and makes a better game plan,” Duncan said with a grimace. “Or maybe this game wasn’t that good because my _lucky charm_ wasn’t around.”

“Dad, how many times do I have to say: you can’t call Harry your lucky charm.” Lily groaned but smiled in her father’s direction. 

“He has to be the best lucky charm. Look at his cheeks! He is adorable!” Fabian cried, stepping closer to Remus and Harry. “Give him to me Remmy, I need to hold this precious little baby.”

Harry extended his arms towards Fabian, who smiled in return. Remus passed Harry to him, who quickly lay down on the floor with Harry on top of him; Harry giggled at Fabian’s antics who started to lift Harry up and down. Dorcas sighed dreamily and soon joined him on the floor. 

“And now we’ve lost her since she’s found someone who is exactly like her.” Marlene sat next to Lily who smiled at the realization that Harry was loved by so many people. “When were you going to tell me about Remus and your little crush?”

“What?” Lily asked as her eyes widened when she saw the smirk on Marlene’s face, and she blushed. “C’mon, let’s talk in Harry's room; we’ll fill Dee in later.”

The two women excused themselves and went to Harry’s room, and Lily closed the door when they entered. 

“Okay, spill: I know that you are hot for him and he is the same.” Marlene didn’t beat around the bush. “My question is: when are you going to climb him like a tree and have your way with him?”

Lily blushed even harder than before but didn’t answer right away. “Do you need to be so vulgar and direct, Marley?”

“Well, yeah! You two were practically shagging each other with your eyes! Do you need me to babysit Harry for you two to have some _adult_ time?”

“Marlene! It’s not _like_ that! We are still getting to know each other! I met him last week, for fuck’s sakes!” Lily was flustered and Marlene’s prying didn’t help. “And I doubt that Remus is interested in me.”

“Are you blind? Or just daft?” Marlene hit Lily on the head. “That man only takes his eyes off you to look at that adorable little boy that is my godson. You two are the perfect match for each other and no one can tell me otherwise.”

“Do you think that he would be interested in me?” Lily asked with a small voice, it made Marlene sigh and side-hug her best friend. 

“Lils, listen to this very carefully because I’m only going to say this once: you’re an amazing girl who deserves to be loved, not only by your son and family — myself and Dee included, but that man out there is willing to love you, if you need. You may have met him last week, but your souls probably met long before; I know that you’re afraid, but you need to let your guard down,” Marlene said with a firm, yet loving, voice. 

“Thank you, Marley, for being here and telling me the things that I need to hear and for being my person.” Lily hugged Marlene, trying to calm herself before she could break down and start to cry. 

“That’s what I’m here for. Now, let’s go back, I want to eat Uncle Dunc’s potato salad before Dee ends with everything.” Marlene laughed and made Lily smile. “See, you’re smiling again! No more tears!”

“Shut up, Marlene.” Lily pushed Marlene away and unlocked the door, returning to the living room. She saw Remus look in her direction and _smile at her_ , it made her insides turn to jelly, and she decided right there that she was going to listen to Marlene’s sage advice.

* * *

“I can’t believe that Harry is already one year old! It seems like it was just yesterday that you were cursing in that hospital room and Marley was asking you if she could call him pumpkin,” Dorcas said hugging Harry to her chest, while the boy only looked at her. 

“And I hope that he survives until he is two, but that will only happen if you stop hugging my son to death, Dee?” Lily smiled at the love and affection that Dorcas was showing to Harry. 

The reality was that she, too, didn’t believe that Harry was already turning one year old today. She missed the first days of his life, when he only wanted her and never let go of her, and he had that heartwarming smell of a newborn baby. Now, he was a little person already, and he had spoken his first word a few weeks ago; that brought a smile to her face while she reminisced...

**~oOo~**

_Lily took Marlene’s words to heart and started to spend more time with Remus, but Harry was always with them — not that Remus minded. Harry looked at Remus like he was the sun, and he smiled whenever he saw the man or heard someone say his name. Remus wasn’t immune to Harry’s charm either, sometimes spending more time with the little boy than with Lily, not that she minded_ — _much. But she was happy with their interaction._

_“C’mon Harry, say Mummy!” Lily was trying to teach Harry to say his first word, as she felt that today was the day._

_“Still trying to coach him, Lilac?” Remus was watching the scene with a fond smile and a cup of tea in his hands. As he felt comfortable with the two of them, he spent most of the week in their flat. During his visits, he had given her the new nickname._

_“I feel like today is the day, Rem, he looks like he’s going to say his first word any moment now.” Lily was excited to hear her son start to talk and she saw that he was going to say something. “Remus! Come over! He is going to say it!”_

_Remus was at Harry’s side on the couch in an instant, both adults looking expectantly to Harry, who smiled brightly at them and spoke his first word: “Remmy.”_

_“What? Harry, what did you say?” Lily asked as she didn’t believe her ears._

_Harry only smiled his two-teeth smile and said again, clearly, “Remmy.”_

_“It’s official: my son loves you more than he loves me, his own mother. You can take Harry with you when you leave Rem, he clearly prefers you.”_

_Remus chuckled, pulling Harry to his lap to come closer to Lily. “Don’t be dramatic, he loves you more than me, right Harry?”_

_“Remmy!”_

_“Take my son Remus, I’m done.” Lily was trying to refrain from smiling, but she wasn’t successful._

_“C’mon Lilac, you know that Harry will miss you,” Remus said, wrapping an arm around her shoulder. “I don’t know what I would do if you weren’t in my life...”_

_“Really?” Lily asked with vulnerability in her eyes. Remus was so close and he had a soft smile on his lips, it would be easy to kiss him right now, but she changed her mind at the last minute._

_“Of course! You and Harry are important parts of my life now...” Remus stopped talking before he said something that he couldn’t take back because now was not the time. “And I’m honoured that my name is his first word.”_

_“Of course you are! C’mon Harry, say mummy!” Lily was laughing and making faces at her son on Remus’ lap._

_“Remmy!”_

_“I give up, you broke my son!”_

**~oOo~**

Lily was still a little touchy when the subject of Harry’s first word surfaced, but now he could also say _Mummy_ and _Dee_ — to Dorcas delight and envious scoffs from Marlene. Iris, too, was delighted that Harry’s first word was Remus’ nickname and mentioned it to Lily every opportunity she got. 

“It’s so nice that your parents are coming to the party, Remus, I’m excited to meet them,” Iris said to the man when he arrived at her house. Lily had decided that Harry’s party should be in a yard instead of at her flat, so everyone was getting together at the Evans’ house. 

“They are excited to meet you all, Harry especially,” Remus replied, blushing a little. “My mum was surprised that Lily sent an invitation to them, but she was fretting over what to buy for Harry.”

“Hope knows that she didn’t need to buy anything for Harry, right? I told her that, but I don’t think she listened to me,” Lily said, coming to greet Remus. 

“I still can’t believe that you spoke to my mum over the phone.” Remus blushed, feeling warm.

“You go to Chelsea matches with my dad, why is it weird that I talk to your mum on the phone?” Lily raised an eyebrow and Remus only smiled sheepishly. “You’re lucky that you’re cute, Mr Lupin.”

“Oh, so you think I’m cute, Miss Evans? Tell me more,” Remus replied with a cheeky grin and a wink in her direction which made her blush. 

“Could you two move your flirting to the backyard? We have some guests that are coming and you two are in the middle of the door,” Iris said with a smirk of her own, and both of them blushed. 

“Okay, Rem, come with me before my mum embarrasses us even more.” Lily grabbed Remus’ arm and dragged him to the backyard. Iris and Duncan had gone all out for their grandson’s first birthday and had rented all the toys that the kids would like to play with; Dorcas was playing with Harry on the bouncy castle as an excuse for doing this for Harry, but anyone could see that she was enjoying it more than Harry was. 

Lily had invited a few people to attend Harry’s first birthday party — namely her parents, Marlene, Dorcas, Remus and his parents, the Longbottoms, the Prewett twins and the Lovegoods. It was small, but she was surrounded by family and friends and that’s what mattered. 

“Did you know that Gideon and Marlene are dating?” Remus said, apparently out of nowhere. “Gid is thinking about introducing her to their sister next week.”

“Really? I knew about the dating part, not that the twins had a sister.” Lily was happy for Marlene, but it made her feel a little jealous of her friend. 

“Yes, they have. Molly is two years younger than us,” Remus said with a smile. 

“You know their family?” Lily asked, a little jealous of the way that Remus was talking about the girl. She tried to deny it to herself, but her feelings for Remus had only grown in the past five months. 

“We used to spend most of our summer vacations together, and Molly was there sometimes. Actually, I was the one who introduced her to Arthur, her husband.” Remus wasn’t fooled by Lily's nonchalant act and he was happy with her little bout of jealousy. 

“Oh, she is married? Nice to know that... ” Lily tried to disguise her feelings, but the smile on Remus' face told her everything that she needed to know. “Oh, shut up, Rem!”

“I didn’t say anything, Lilac!” Remus smiled even wider, and Lily grew frustrated and annoyed with herself, for being so affected by him.

“But you were thinking something! Oh, look, your parents are here. Go bring them here while I save my son from Dee.” Lily pushed him in the direction of his parents while she went to grab Harry to greet the newcomers. Remus took his time to walk up to his parents, and he could see that his mother was smiling at him.

Hope Lupin was a sweet woman who doted on her son every opportunity that she got; she had only one child and she was intent on showering all her love upon Remus. She was delighted when she discovered that Remus had met Lily, and she couldn’t wait to meet her; learning that she had a son that Hope could spoil was the cherry on top. Lyall, Remus’ father, was a lot like his son: an academic; Hope was the ball of energy of the family, while Lyall could be described as the _down-to-earth_ parent. They balanced each other and Remus was the perfect mix of the two. 

“Remus! It’s so nice to see you! You haven’t visited in ages! And you grew a beard! I never thought I would see the day,” Hope chattered too fast for Remus to follow, so he only nodded and let his mother dote on him. 

“It’s nice to see you too, mum, how have you been?” Remus hugged his mother, stopping the flow of words coming from her mouth. “Hi, Dad, I missed you.”

“Hey, son, I missed you too. Where’s the birthday boy?” Lyall asked, with a small smile in his son’s direction. 

“Here he is!” Lily chose that moment to approach the Lupins, with a giggling Harry in her arms. “Hello, Mr and Mrs Lupin, it's nice to meet you. I’m Lily Evans and this adorable little man is Harry.”

“Oh my Lord, he _is_ adorable! And please, call me Hope, darling,” Hope said with a twinkle in her eyes, pushing past Remus. “Can I hold him?”

“Of course, Harry loves to meet new people. And he has a thing for Lupins, just ask your son.” Lily winked in Remus direction, which made Hope beam with delight. 

“Hello, pretty boy, how are you? You’re so handsome,” Hope spoke in a baby voice to Harry, who only giggled and hugged Hope. “I’m in love, Lyall.”

“Of course you are, my dear.” Lyall laughed at this wife’s antics. “My wife may be trying to steal Harry from you, I’m sorry. And please, call me Lyall.”

“No problem at all, Lyall, Marlene — that’s Harry’s godmother — tries to steal him once a month, because she says that she can’t get enough of him.” Lily giggled, she was happy that Remus’ parents liked her son. This meant a lot to her. 

“I can see why, he is such a precious boy,” Lyall commented, looking at his son who was watching his mother. “And I believe that Remus agrees with me.”

“Definitely, Harry is a delight to have around,” Remus replied without taking his eyes off his mother, who continued to speak with Harry in her baby voice. 

Iris was observing the scene from afar, watching the way that Lily and Remus interacted with each other and with Harry; she was happy to realize that the first impression Remus had given her was correct: he was falling in love with Harry and Lily, and her daughter wasn’t far behind. Iris just didn’t know how much time it would take for one of them to ask the other out on a date. 

“Lily, everyone is here! It's time for presents!” An animated Marlene bounced her way into the little reunion, and in no time, everyone in the party gathered around, with Lily and Harry at the head of the table. 

The presents Harry received were mostly toys and clothes, with few exceptions, like the book collection that Alice gave him or the mini car the twins gave Harry — “You never know, he could be a racecar driver when he grows up!” — and it wasn’t until the last gift was opened that Remus gave Harry his present. 

“Okay, before I give this to Harry, I need to say something.” Remus was embarrassed that everyone was looking at him. “While this is a gift for Harry, it is also a gift for you, Lily.”

“For me? Really?” Lily was touched that Remus bought something for her, and was trying not to let it show. 

“Really. Open the envelope first,” Remus said, motioning to the envelope on top of the box. When Lily opened, she let out a soft gasp and showed everyone why: Remus had bought them tickets to a Chelsea match. 

“Oh my God, Remus, this is awesome! Thank you so much!” Lily stood up and hugged Remus with all her might, not giving room for him to discuss. “And you’re going with us to the match, of course. I won’t hear differently.”

“Good job, Remus, but Harry can’t go to a match without a jersey,” Duncan said, tapping his shoulders. 

“Yeah, I know… open the box now, Lilac.” Remus blushed a deep dark-red and he didn’t even know why. 

Lily opened the box and her eyes were welling up already; she reached inside and pulled out a tiny jersey with _Evans_ written on the back. Marlene, Dorcas and Alice were trying to disguise their tears at such a thoughtful gift, while Frank was trying to hide behind Neville. 

“Mate… are you crying?” Fabian asked, disbelief evident on his face at what he was seeing. 

“What? Of course not! Nev poked me in the eye, that’s why I have tears in them, okay? Shut up, Fab!” Frank always _was_ the softie in their group of friends and seeing the thoughtful gift that Remus had bought had brought tears to his eyes. 

After the round of presents, everyone decided that was the best time to sing _Happy Birthday_ and have some cake. The cake wasn’t big, but it was enough to feed everyone; the candle was a football that Harry tried to grab when it lit up. Lily told him to make a wish before he blew the candle, and the concentration on his face when he did was too adorable. 

_“Something tells me I'm going to love him forever,”_ Harry thought as he looked at the man who was quickly becoming one of his favourite people in the whole world. As he made a wish to keep Remus with him all the time, Harry blew out the candle. 

* * *

“Who’s excited to go to the game? I know you are, Harry,” Lily was saying with a baby voice while putting his tiny jersey on him. “It’s your first match in a stadium!”

“And don’t forget that’s your first game with _Rem_ , and I know that you’re excited about that too.” Marlene watched Lily with a piercing stare, looking at her friend like she knew what she was thinking. 

“Yeah, of course I’m excited about this! It’s been ages since I went to Stamford Bridge and it’s Harry's first time going there!” Lily was starting to get more excited. “Do you think it’s too much if I paint Harry’s face?”

“Oh, for fudge’s sake, Lily! I know that you’re the worst when it comes to football but you can’t fool me and say that you aren’t excited to go on a date with Remus!” Marlene tried to keep her cool, but sometimes, Lily was too oblivious for her own good. “You’ve been dancing around this attraction between you two for the past _five_ months! We have a bet on when you two are going to finally kiss and put us out of our misery!”

“Do you have a bet on us? Who would bet on that?” Lily asked, widening her eyes.

“Hum… me, Dee, Gid, Fab, Ally, Frank, Augusta, Auntie Iris, Uncle Dunc.” Marlene was counting on her fingers, missing the way that Lily was freaking out. 

“My _parents_ bet on me and Rem? What is happening?” 

“We all love you and we know that you and Rem are perfect for each other, so please, do your best friend a favour and snog that man _senseless_!”

Lily was at a loss at what to say but was saved at that moment by Harry. 

“ _Lele!_ ” Harry said, looking at Marlene and smiling wider. 

“Oh my… did he just say what I think he said?” Marlene asked, with tears forming in her eyes. Harry sensed that she was talking about him and repeated the soft “ _Lele_ ” that made Marlene grab Harry on her arms and started to pepper his face with kisses while trying not to cry. 

Lily laughed softly, remembering that she had the same reaction when Harry said “ _Mummy”_ and she had broken down into tears in the middle of the store; at least Marlene was in the privacy of their flat. Hearing someone knock on the door, Lily went to answer and smiled wider when she saw Remus on the other side, wearing a jersey similar to Harry’s, but with _Lupin_ on the back. 

“Hey, Lilac, are you ready? I know that I’m early, but I thought of coming earlier so we can have time to go to the stadium without hurry,” Remus spoke hurriedly and blushed under Lily’s stare who thought about what Marlene had told her. 

“Hey, Rem, we are almost ready. Why don’t you come in and wait on the couch? I just need to rescue Harry from Marlene’s claws.” Lily laughed while gesturing for him to enter. 

“Harry finally said her name?” Remus asked with a glint in his eyes. “Did she cry?”

“She was tearing up when I went to open the door, but I don’t think she'll cry; she's the toughest of us.” Lily’s smile was so lovely that Remus was finding it difficult not to kiss her right there. 

“Harry says _you're drooling more than I do, so stop it and be a man_ ,” Marlene said from the couch, breaking their gaze. “And I agree with him on this!”

“Marlene...” Lily groaned into her hands, trying to fight her blush. “I’ll finish getting ready, and please, Marley, try not to embarrass me too much, okay?”

Lily left the room, going to her bedroom to change her clothes, leaving Remus and Marlene to keep an eye on Harry. Lily usually didn’t leave Marlene alone with Remus, but today she had no choice in the matter. 

“What are you saying, Harry?” Marleen asked, bringing her ear closer to Harry’s mouth who only laughed. “Oh… this is interesting.”

“What is Harry saying this time, Marley?” Remus asked, amused. He knew that Marlene usually used Harry as an excuse to say what she wanted to say. 

“Harry says _why haven't you asked my mummy out yet?_ This is a very good question, _”_ Marlene said, turning into Remus’ direction. “So? Are you going to answer him or not?”

Remus blanched; he didn’t know how to answer or what to do. It was true that he wanted to ask Lily out, but he was too afraid that it could change things between them and he didn’t want to mess up one of the best things that happened in his life. But with the insistent look that Marlene was sending him, he decided to answer. 

“I guess I was trying not to mess things up, and I’m trying to assess the situation? I don’t know, Marley...” Remus ran his hand through his hair, showing his vulnerability and distress. 

“I know that you’re scared about this, Rem, but you have to remember that you have all our blessings and more importantly, you have _pumpkin’s_ blessing,” Marlene said, pointing at Harry who was reaching for Remus who promptly grabbed Harry. “See? He already adores you, and the entire family does too!”

“Are you sure about this?” Remus still sounded unsure. “What do you think, Harry? I should ask your mum out?”

“ _Mummy! Rem!_ ” Harry babbled happily, snuggling a little against Remus. 

“And that could be translated as _can you two just kiss and put us all out of our misery?_ ” Marlene asked with a shit-eating grin, which was so like Gideon’s that Remus could understand why the two were such a good couple. 

“Alright, you won! I’ll think about it, okay? But don’t say a word to Lily!” Remus said with a threatening finger in Marlene’s direction, which was promptly imitated by Harry. “Glad to know that you agree with me on this one, Harry.”

“What does Harry agree with you?” Lily asked, coming into the room and stealing Remus’ breath away. She was wearing jeans and a Chelsea jersey, but he thought that she was the most beautiful girl in the world. 

“Wow...” Remus trailed off, making Lily blush. 

“Okay, you don’t want to lose the game, so why don’t you three go?” Marlene motioned with her hands. “Tomorrow, we are all meeting at the Longbottoms, and I don’t want to hear any excuses!”

“Ally knows about this?” Lily asked, amused, as she grabbed her bag and Harry’s nappy bag. 

“Of course! She was the one who asked me to pass the message along. I’ll walk you out.” Marlene stood up and walked alongside the three of them to Remus’ car. Marlene was happy to see that Remus had already bought a baby seat for Harry, and she could see that Lily approved of it too. She couldn’t wait until those two finally became a couple.

Harry loved to travel by car, watching the houses pass by, listening to songs and dancing to the beat. He was preoccupied with dancing and watching the houses go by that he didn’t pay attention to anything else; Lily always smiled when she saw how Harry was so much at ease and happy with his preoccupation. Remus smiled seeing her smile, and he decided that he was going to ask her out soon. 

“I’m so excited! Harry is going to enjoy this gift so much!” Lily was saying excitedly. “Thank you so much for this, Rem, I don’t know how to repay this.”

“You know that you don’t need to, right? Just letting me accompany you two there makes me happy.” Remus smiled, as he grabbed one of her hands in his and squeezed it gently. Lily didn’t remove her hand, so he left their entwined hands resting in between them and focused on driving. 

It didn’t take long for them to arrive at the stadium: Lily was in charge of the bags, while Remus carried Harry. The little boy was already starting to walk a few steps and always wanted to try to walk by himself, but Remus put Harry on his shoulders, afraid that he could get lost in the crowd; whoever looked in their direction thought that they were a little family and smiled in their direction. 

They found their seats right away and Remus sat with Harry on his lap since he knew how the redhead got when she was watching a match; Lily was glad for this, and she was enchanted by the image the two of them made. 

“Harry looks comfy sitting on your lap, and you two are so damn adorable!” Lily couldn’t contain herself, the sight in front of her was the epitome of cuteness. 

“Thanks,” Remus mumbled, blushing under her praise. “You, too, are adorable.”

“Well, thank you Mr Lupin!” Lily smiled wider, seeing Remus squirm from her praise. “Let’s take a selfie and send it to our friends and family.”

An old lady sitting near them heard Lily and asked, “May I take the picture for you, darling?”

“Thank you!” Lily handed her phone to the lady, and without thinking much about what she was doing, hugged Remus’ waist and smiled. Remus was surprised with Lily’s attitude but recovered quickly — adjusting Harry on his hip, he soon grabbed Lily’s waist and the smile on his face could have been seen from the moon. 

“Oh, you’re an adorable family! Congrats on your boy!” The lady returned Lily’s phone, and with a little wave to Harry, she sat down. 

“Well, that was a little awkward.” Remus scratched his neck, embarrassed with what the woman had said, but he couldn’t deny that felt good. 

“She isn’t wrong, you know, we are kinda like a family,” Lily murmured, but Remus was unable to answer because the referee blew the whistle, signalling the beginning of the match.

The match wasn’t very different from the one that Remus had watched for the first time at Lily’s place, but somehow, it was different; maybe it was because of what Lily had said before the beginning of the game, or the fact that they were at a stadium, but something had shifted between them. Lily had bought them a case of beer, saying that it’s tradition and Remus wasn’t going to discuss this with her. 

Everyone was normal between them until Timo Werner kicked the ball and scored a goal. Everyone in the stadium was out of their seats cheering loudly; Lily couldn’t believe that she was experiencing something like that with Harry and Remus, who were celebrating by her side. The next thing Lily knew, Remus had slammed his lips against hers and nearly knocked all the wind from her lungs.

Lily hardly had a moment to react before Remus pressed his tongue to the seam of her lips and, at her grant of access, delved inside her mouth. It was a very sloppy kiss with the strong scent of beer being exchanged in the intermingling of their swirling breaths. Her arms reached up and tangled around his thick, strong neck. 

They only separated when they were breathless and Harry was hugging them both, clueless about what was happening with his two favourite adults. Harry didn’t know yet, but his birthday wish was closer to becoming real. 

Remus couldn’t look Lily in the eyes, as he was ashamed at the wantonness of his actions. He should have asked her on a date before he kissed her! But a voice inside his head was saying that the match was the perfect first date for them. Lily, on the other hand, was smiling like a loon, glad that Remus finally took matters into his own hands and did something. It was only at half-time that Remus spoke with Lily again. 

“Hey, Lilac… do you think that you can call Marley so she can watch Harry for a while so we can go have a private conversation?” Remus asked in a soft tone, still embarrassed. 

“Sure, I’ll send her a text for her to have Harry for the night so we can talk,” Lily said, grabbing her cellphone, but quickly added. “Not that I have anything in mind, it’s just that she’s always asking to spend more time with him.”

Remus chuckled despite himself. “Don’t worry, Lilac, I get it.”

They watched the rest of the game in silence, just enjoying each other's presence; even when Chelsea made another goal, they maintained their distance. Harry became sleepy towards the final minutes of the match, and even with all the screams and cheers of everyone, he didn’t wake up. Remus and Lily walked slowly to the car, Remus carrying a sleeping Harry, their hands brushing every few steps. The journey to Marlene’s apartment was silent but they exchanged a few smiles now and then. 

Marlene was waiting for them in front of her building, with a shit-eating grin on her face. With a promise that she would tell her everything in the morning when Lily came to pick Harry, she and Remus went to her flat. They entered without trading any words, and Lily went to make them some tea; after spending so much time together, she knew the exact way he drank his tea. They sat on the couch, sipping their tea, their eyes trailing around the room, but not glancing at each other.

“So...” Lily started, without knowing how to begin.

“I’m sorry for the way that I kissed you, it wasn’t supposed to be like that!” Remus blurted and drank a large sip of tea, while Lily just stared at him with wide eyes. “If this is too much, I can go, or...”

“No!” Lily stopped him before he could get up. Putting her cup on the table, she turned to face Remus, smiling a little. “I’m glad that you kissed me, I don’t think I would have the guts to kiss you myself.”

Remus was stunned, he never thought that he would hear her say something like this. 

“I understand if you kissed me on a spur of a moment. I know that I can be too much, and with Harry too, and…” Lily looked down at her hands folded on her lap, so she missed the way that Remus was gazing at her. Remus put his cup on the table and grabbed Lily’s hands. 

“Lily, I’ve wished to kiss you ever since I first came here. I found your relationship with Harry one of the purest things in the whole world,” Remus whispered, his voice made butterflies appear in her stomach. “I wished that you felt something for me because I wanted to be a part of your life. Lilac… _you’re my definition of perfect._ ”

Lily tried not to cry, but Remus was saying all the things that she had wanted to hear for so long. She didn’t know how to respond, but luckily for her, she didn’t need to say anything. 

Remus grabbed her by her waist, pulling her up close against his chest. His hand gently glided through her hair, as he looked at her in a way he had never looked at a woman before. Her eyes were like candles in the night, their light a spark of passion... of desire. As a small but consenting smile crept upon her face, goosebumps lined her skin, not the kind that one gets in the cold, but the kind one gets when nothing else mattered except the moment right here, right _now_. 

He gently lowered his head closer to her until their foreheads touched, and they could gaze into each other’s eyes, their hearts steadily speeding up. Remus’ eyes implored her to give her his permission, which Lily did by closing her eyes and leaning closer. The next moment, their lips touched and they were lost in each other’s embrace. 

This kiss was different from the one they had shared before, there wasn't any rush in this one. They took their time to learn about each other, what made each other moan or what made them sigh in contentedness. Remus broke the kiss with a soft gasp and started to kiss down Lily’s neck, which made her sigh happily and arch her back to press closer to the delicious warmth he was emanating. 

“I want to take things slow with you, Lilac, and I want to have you and Harry in my life...” Remus said, peppering kisses to her throat. “Do you want to be my girlfriend?”

Lily grabbed his face and kissed him. “Of course I want to be your girlfriend, Rem! I wanted to kiss you ever since I saw the way that Harry clung to you, and I never wanted to let you go. I guess my wish came true.”

They spent the rest of the night snogging on the couch like a couple of teenagers, not wanting to rush anything into their newfound relationship. Remus, in the end, slept the night in Lily's flat; but they only cuddled, happy to go slow.

* * *

They had been dating for the past two months and Lily couldn’t be happier. Waking up that first morning in Remus’ arms was one of the best feelings in the world; they cooked breakfast together and went to pick Harry to spend some time with him before they went to the Longbottoms. Marlene discovered that they were together in one glance, but she agreed to keep their secret until they were ready to tell everyone; Harry was delighted at spending more time with Remus, even if he didn’t understand what was happening. 

The little family arrived at the Longbottoms’, and Duncan was the one who called their relationship out in the open: apparently, he was the one who had bet they would become a couple at the match. Lily was surprised that her parents had betted on her, but Remus only laughed; he was glad that their friends were getting along and their families were becoming one. 

Remus surprised Lily at the weekend before classes started, buying Harry a tiny sweater — it was the exact same as the one Remus wore while he was teaching. Lily burst into tears at the sight, and Remus was afraid that he had done something wrong, but she threw herself at him and snogged him senseless, so he realized that he had done something right after all. 

“Babe, do you need something from the market?” Lily asked Remus who was playing with Harry in their flat. Remus was passing more and more time at her flat, not that she minded. 

“Huh?” Remus asked, looking at Lily. “You’re going to the market already? Can Harry and I come with you?”

“Why do you want to go to the market with me? You hate going there.”

“Yeah, but I like to go with you; besides, Harry and I want to show off our matching sweaters.”

Lily laughed but couldn’t deny him: they looked adorable with the matching sweaters and Harry wanted to wear his all the time. 

“Fine, you can go with me. But let’s go, I don’t want to take longer; my mum, your mum and I are going to have tea today, so I can’t be late.”

“I’m so glad that your mum and my mum are getting along, sometimes it’s like they are schoolgirls at a sleepover.”

“Oh, you have no idea!” Lily said, kissing Remus lightly and picking Harry up. “Let’s go, honey pea, let’s go to the market!”

“ _Mak_!” Harry tried to say the word, but he still couldn’t. Remus and Lily laughed and went to the car. The trip to the market was quick, and they were inside the market in no time at all. 

Everyone who passed by cooed at how adorable Remus and Harry were in the matching sweaters, and Lily only rolled her eyes when she saw Remus puff his chest at how proud he felt or when Harry tried to imitate him. Everything was going smoothly until they bumped into an aunt of Remus. 

Arabella Figg Howell was Hope’s great aunt and she was the type of person who screamed “ _tradition!_ ” from her posture. Remus hadn’t seen his aunt in a long time, but he recognized her in the blink of an eye. He grimaced as he thought about what Arabella may say to him and Lily. 

“Remus! Seems so long since the last time that we meet! How are your parents? And...” Arabella stopped talking when she saw Harry in the cart wearing a tiny sweater like Remus’ and Lily next to them. “When did you get married? And why did your parents never tell me that you already had a son?”

“Aunt Arabella, it isn’t like that —” Remus tried to talk, but was stopped. 

“Oh, I see! No one thinks I’m family, right? I bet it was Lyall who decided not to tell me anything! Why didn’t you send me a letter? Since you didn’t want me to your wedding,” Arabella ranted, and Remus didn’t know where to hide his face; Lily was amused by everything. 

“You know what? I’m calling your mother and she will have to answer my questions!” Arabella took her phone out, and in no time, she was talking with Hope. She put the phone on speaker, so Remus could hear the amused voice of his mother. “Hope! How are you? You’ll never believe who I ran into at the market.”

“ _Hi, Aunt Arabella! I’m good, how about you? And who did you run into?_ ”

“I’m good, thank you for asking. I ran into Remus! Why did you never tell me that he was married and had a child already?” Arabella ranted and raved, while Remus hoped a hole would open and swallow him whole. 

“ _Oh, you met Harry? He is adorable, isn’t he? Lyall and I are so lucky to have him in our lives and Lily is a great addition to our family._ ”

Remus perked up, hearing his mother blatantly lie to his aunt, and turned to see Lily’s reaction, he was even more shocked to see Lily smiling. Something was going on and he didn’t have a clue what it was.

“So you admit that he has a son? And why did you never think about telling me about him or your daughter-in-law?” Arabella was furious.

“ _I’m sorry, Aunt Arabella, things happened so fast that I’m afraid I forgot. You can’t blame me, Harry is so adorable that every time I’m with him, he is the only thing on my mind._ ”

“Well… but what about your daughter-in-law? Why didn’t you make her call me to introduce herself or something ?”

“ _I apologize for this, we should have thought about this. But I think we can right some wrongs... Why don’t you join us at a family dinner, so you can properly meet them? What do you think of that?_ ”

“I would love to! Call me when you finalize the plans for dinner and I’ll be there. Bye, dear.” Arabella hung up and turned to Remus, with a smile on her face. “Remus! I’m so happy for you! I can’t wait for this dinner! Nice to meet you too, Lily, we’ll talk more at dinner. I still have some things to buy. Bye, dears!”

Arabella disappeared down the aisle, and soon Lily and Remus were alone, with Harry safely tucked in the cart, oblivious to the world. 

“What the heck happened here?” Remus turned to Lily, who was still smiling. “Since when did my mum call Harry grandson?”

“Ever since his birthday actually,” Lily answered, sheepish. “She realized that something was happening between us and asked me if I minded if she called Harry her grandkid and added that he could call her _Memé_ since Harry calls my mum _Nana_. I didn’t see any problems with that… unless you don’t want it.”

“Are you kidding? I’m thrilled that someone would think that Harry is my son,” Remus said with a choked voice. “The only thing better than this would be if he was my kid.”

“If you play your cards right, this could be a reality in the future...” Lily said, biting her lip, she couldn’t believe what she had just said. She blushed under Remus’ stare who could only gape at the woman in front of him. 

“I think I’m falling in love with you,” Remus whispered softly, so softly that Lily almost didn’t hear him, but fortunately, she did. 

“Good, because I’m falling in love with you too,” Lily replied in the same tone as Remus. They both smiled at each other as they came closer and stole a quick kiss, never forgetting where they were. They would still be lost in their bubble of love if it wasn't for Harry. 

“ _Luv!_ ” Harry said with an adorable baby voice, it made them break the kiss and look at the little boy smiling at them. “ _Luv!_ ”

“Yes, Harry, one day we will get there. In the meantime, we love you, sweet pea,” Lily said, kissing Harry’s head and grabbing Remus’ hand, moving to the other aisle _and_ in the direction of their future. 

* * *

**_Two Years Later…_ **

Harry couldn’t wait for his birthday party to start. He was turning three today! And he already knew what his wish would be when he blew the candle, he hoped that it would turn real. The wish that he had made on his first birthday became reality: Remus had become his dad and he had married his mother not long ago…

**~oOo~**

_Remus was nervous, more nervous than he felt on his first day as a teacher. In a few moments, he was going to marry the love of his life, and he was freaking out; he was afraid that he would throw up and his friends would never let him hear the end of it._

_“Remus, are you okay? You look a little pale,” Lyall commented, seeing his son pale like a ghost. “You don’t need to worry, Lily isn’t going to run away from you.”_

_“Oh my God, she ran away from me, right? You’re here to tell me that she isn’t coming. What did I do wrong, Dad?” Remus was almost in tears at this point, which made Lyall laugh._

_“For God’s sake, son, compose yourself! Lily is coming, Duncan sent me a message that they got into the car and will be here in no time.” Lyall was enjoying Remus’ despair more than he should, but he couldn’t help it; he had done the same thing on his wedding day._

_“How is everything around here? The priest is in position, just waiting for you to give him the green signal to start. Looking a little pale there, huh, Remmy?” Frank was Remus’ best man and in charge of everything._

_“I know that I’m pale, okay? Tell the priest that Lily and Duncan are coming and we are probably going to start in ten minutes.” Remus took a deep breath, trying not to faint. He was going to marry Lily in a few minutes and he didn’t need to worry Lily or his parents._

_Remus had asked Lily to marry him on the anniversary of their first kiss, in Stamford Bridge, after a Chelsea match. All their friends and family were there and Harry was the one who gave Lily her ring; it was a lovely day, one that stayed in the memory of everyone involved. And now, here they were, getting married._

_The ceremony itself had been sweet and simple; they had gotten married in a country house, with a platform where the ceremony was performed, right next to a lake._

_Remus wore a grey tuxedo with a marsala-coloured tie, and Harry wore the same clothes; Frank, as the best man, and Fabian and Gideon, as groomsmen, wore grey tuxedos with tea-rose-coloured ties. Marlene, as Lily’s maid-of-honour, wore a dress that was darker tea-rose in colour, while Dorcas and Alice donned pale tea-rose dresses as bridesmaids._

_But Lily was a vision from heaven: she wore a white dress with lace-covered details, a v-neck and open back, with a marsala-coloured ribbon wrapped around her waistline. Her hair was pulled up in an intricate hairdo, with little tea roses in her hair: Remus stopped breathing for a few minutes when he saw her, and he couldn’t believe that she was going to be his wife._

_Lily couldn’t stop smiling when she arrived at the place of the ceremony: the sight took her breath away. It was what she had always dreamt about, but it was even better than her dreams. Seeing Harry look like a miniature version of Remus made her heart skip a beat, and she didn’t think that she could love those two more than she already did._

 _They didn’t remember most of the ceremony_ — _they were too focused on each other, but the moment Lily remembered most of all was when the priest declared them husband and wife. Their life together started at that moment and she couldn’t be happier._

**~oOo~**

“Harry! Nev and Luna are here! Come say hi!” Remus’ voice boomed over the yard — since they were celebrating Harry’s birthday at Lupin's house — and the boy ran to greet his friends. 

Neville was a day older than Harry and had celebrated his birthday already, but he was always happy to share the attention with Harry. Luna Lovegood was a girl slightly younger than Harry and Neville, but she was a good friend of the two, and she was almost two years old. 

“Hi, Luna, hi, Nev! I’m glad you came!” Harry was almost out of breath when he came closer to his friends. 

“Hey, Harry! Happy birthday!” Neville said, giving Harry a present while holding Luna’s hand with the other. “I hope you like it, I think it’s the same that your mum gave me.”

“Oh, so must be _goog!_ ” Harry smiled at his friends. “Let’s go to the castle!”

Harry grabbed Luna’s other hand and dragged his friends toward the same bouncy castle that was at Harry’s first birthday party, only this time, Dorcas didn’t need to go with Harry on it — except that she went on it anyway. 

Remus watched the kids run with a smile on his face when he felt Lily’s arms encircle his waist; turning around, he kissed his wife’s temple, happy to just hold her in his arms. 

“Hello, love, I missed you,” Remus murmured into her ear. 

“I was here the whole time, Remus,” Lily giggled. 

“But you weren’t near me, so I can miss my brilliant wife, can’t I? Besides, _our_ son couldn’t shut up, so I’m glad the kids are here to distract him.”

“I love when you call him _our_ son, you know?” Lily sighed dreamily.

“Well, I did make it official last year, right?” Remus had formally adopted Harry a few weeks after his second birthday. “When are we going to tell him?”

“The same time that we are going to tell everyone: next month.”

Lily and Remus were keeping a secret from their family and friends, and couldn’t wait for the time to come to reveal their surprise to them. 

“We are only waiting for Marley and Gid to come before we sing happy birthday. Dee went to grab more fudge and Fab was trying to convince our dads to go with him on that camp trip,” Lily informed her husband. Marlene and Gideon were engaged to be married in two months and Fabian had finally plucked the courage to ask Dorcas out. 

Marlene and Gideon came soon enough, dishevelled and with smiles on their faces; trying not to get the kids to ask why they looked like the cat who had eaten the canary, Lily insisted on singing happy birthday right away. 

“Make a wish, Harry!” Lyall said from behind a camera, filming his grandson blowing the candles. 

Harry made a concentrated face and said, “I wish that mum and dad give me a little brother or sister!”

Remus and Lily looked at each other, eyes widened. It wasn’t that they didn’t think about having another child, it was the thought that Harry wanted a sibling. 

“Harry, sweetie, you know that it doesn’t work like that, right? Your parents can’t give you a sibling just because you wished...” Iris was trying to reason with him. 

“Actually, we have something to tell you...” Lily started, with a small smile. “We were going to wait until next month, but since Harry asked, I think we can grant his wish now.”

“Oh my God, are you saying...?” Marley asked with sparkling eyes and hands covering her mouth. 

“Yes, we are having a baby!” Lily said with glistening eyes and a smile brighter than the sun. 

Everyone gathered around the couple, congratulating them and doting on Lily; but no one was happier than Harry. The little boy had his birthday wish granted for the second time and he was getting a sibling. It was going to take seven months, but Elizabeth and Emma Lupin would be born into a family full of love. 

An accidental pregnancy had given Lily one of the most beautiful gifts she could ever dream of having, and her _son_ had brought her in contact with Remus. Now, all because of Harry, she had gained two beautiful daughters.

Wherever James was, Lily hoped he, too, could be as happy as she was. It had all started in a common bar, but it had ended on the perfect note: her three precious children and the most wonderful man she had the pleasure of meeting right by her side.


End file.
